March Sonatina

For solo Flute.

Composer's Programme Note

'March Sonatina is the third in a series of short sonatina-like pieces for solo
instruments, and it was commissioned by the 25th Presteigne Festival of Music
and the Arts with funds provided by the Colwinston Charitable Trust, and it is
dedicated to this most loveable of Festivals. The first performance was given by
Kathryn Thomas on Tuesday 28th August 2007, at St Mary’s Church,
Kinnerton.

It contrasts a slow opening with a quicker central section, and employs a few
special flute effects, though not to any great extent. In the middle of the piece, a
lyrical phrase from Ravel’sminiature Prelude for piano suddenly pops up, and
is then varied. It was a surprise to me to find that a high F sharp, on which the
sonatina ends, seemed absolutely the right note on which to finish. The
atmosphere of the opening section seems to me to relate closely to a number of
recent pieces inspired by rainforests.'